All About Vanilla

The vanilla bean requires approximately nine months to reach maturity, growing six to ten inches long like a overgrown string bean. Harvested beans are immersed in a hot water bath, then put into wooden boxes and covered with blankets to lock in the heat, where they will "sweat" for 24 to 72 hours, beginning the enzymatic change that produces vanillin. Finally, the beans are placed on blankets and dried in the sun for three to four months to complete the curing process. The cured beans—wrinkled and chocolate colored—are tied in bundles, packed in boxes, and shipped to McCormick, where they are weighed, chopped, and percolated in large stainless steel containers, much like coffee percolators. After the vanilla is aged for several weeks, it is bottled and shipped to stores. Click here for more. http://www.wackyuses.com/wf_vanilla.html